Chapter 37
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Eleonora
I wake up slowly, reaching across the bed for Nico’s warmth, only to find cold sheets.
My eyes flutter open. The room is dark except for the faint glow of moonlight filtering through the curtains. He’s not here. I sit up, calling his name softly.
“Nico?”
No answer. The silence feels heavier than it should.
I slip out of bed, grab the silk robe he bought me, and pull it over my shoulders. Maybe he's working.
I’m thirsty, so I decide to head downstairs for a glass of cold water instead of drinking from the carafe on my nightstand.
As I descend the stairs, I notice the light spilling out from under the door of Nico's office. As I walk up to the door, I hear low voices coming from inside, I recognize Nico’s deep tone immediately, and Marco’s as well.
I'm about to leave them to whatever they are discussing and then I hear my sisters being mentioned.
My heart slams against my ribs. I freeze at the words I hear.
I can’t breathe.
They’re talking about my sisters like pieces on a chessboard. Like they’re bargaining chips. Just like my father always did.
Before I can stop myself, I push the door open.
Both men turn sharply. Nico’s eyes widen when he sees me standing there.
“What?” The word comes out sharper than I intended. “What the hell are you talking about? My sisters? You’re planning things about them behind my back?”
“Eleonora—” he starts, voice low.
Marco clears his throat. “I’ll give you two some privacy.” He slips out quickly, closing the door behind him.
Nico walks toward me, his expression guarded. “Why aren’t you in bed?”
That’s his response? My anger flares hotter.
“Are you serious right now?” I snap, stepping back when he reaches for me. “I just heard you talking about my sisters like they’re assets to be moved and secured. Like my father used to do. Like they’re nothing but tools in your war with Gallo. And your first question is why I’m not in bed?”
“Eleonora…”
“How long were you planning to keep this from me?”
He stops, jaw tight. “I was trying to protect you.”
“Protect me?” My voice cracks. “By keeping me in the dark while you arrange my sisters’ lives like they’re pawns? You’re no different from Massimo right now.”
Nico’s eyes flash with frustration. “You think I want this? Gallo is obsessed with you. He’s pushing your father to hand you over. If I don’t secure Camilla and Daniela now, Massimo will use them next. I’m trying to stop another one of your sisters from being sold off before it’s too late.”
The words hit hard. I feel tears burning my eyes.
“So you were just going to handle everything without telling me?” I whisper. “Decide my family’s fate while I sleep peacefully in your bed?”
He steps closer, but I take another step back.
“I didn’t want you to carry this fear,” he says, voice rough. “You’ve carried enough.”
I shake my head, hurt and anger twisting together in my chest.
“That's not for you to decide. All my life I've been surrounded by men who make decisions for me. I thought you were going to be different.”
I reach for the beautiful ring he gave me earlier and slowly slide it off my finger. My hand trembles as I hold it out to him.
“I need time to think,” I say, my voice barely steady. “I can’t do this right now.”
Nico stares at the ring in my palm, something painful flashing across his face.
“Eleonora…”
“Please,” I whisper, tears slipping down my cheeks. “Just… take it for now.”
The look on his face as I place the ring back in his hand nearly breaks me.
For a split second, something raw and painful flashes across his features, not anger, but something closer to heartbreak. It makes my chest tighten so hard I almost reach out and take the ring back.
Instead, I turn away quickly, tears already spilling down my cheeks as I walked out of his office. I didn’t want him to see me cry.
By the time I reach our bedroom, the tears have turned into full sobs. I crawl onto the bed, curling into myself, pressing my face into the pillow that still smells like him. The scent only makes it worse.
I thought he was different.
I really believed that somewhere along the way, he would see me as an equal, and not make decisions that affect me without letting me have a say.
Maybe I’m still nothing more than a pawn in this game.
The door opens softly behind me.
“Eleonora…” Nico’s voice is gentle, careful. He doesn’t come closer. “Baby…”
I keep my back to him, shoulders shaking with silent sobs. “I’d like to be alone. If you don’t mind.”
There’s a long pause. I can feel him standing there, watching me.
“I know this is your room too,” I whisper, voice thick with tears. “I’ll move back to my old bedroom.”
“No,” he says quietly. “If you need space, I’ll give it to you. This is our room. I’ll sleep somewhere else.”
I hear him hesitate for another second, like he wants to say more, but then the door clicks shut again. He leaves.
The moment he’s gone, the dam breaks completely.
I bury my face deeper into the pillow and cry harder than I have in a while. Ugly, heaving sobs that shake my entire body.
I cry for my sisters, for Sienna who lost Domenico, for Camilla and Daniela who are still trapped in that house.
I cry because I let myself fall for a man who kidnapped me.
I cry because for a brief, stupid moment, I thought maybe someone finally saw me, not my last name, not my value as an alliance, not what I could give them.
Just me.
And now I don’t know what’s real anymore.
Do I even want to marry him? Or am I just terrified of going back to a life where I’m sold off to someone like Gallo?
Is this feeling in my chest love… or is it Stockholm syndrome wrapped in mindblowing sex I’ve ever had?
I cry until my throat hurts and my eyes burn. Until there are no more tears left, only exhaustion and a hollow ache in my chest.
I don’t know what I’m going to do. I just know that right now, it hurts.
The next few days, Nico keeps to his word and gives me exactly what I asked for. Space.
Too much space.
I barely see him anymore. We no longer share breakfast like we used to, and dinner has become a lonely affair where I sit at the long table with just Sienna, wondering if he’s eating in his office or not eating at all.
The house feels different now, quieter, heavier, like a storm cloud has settled over everything. Even the staff move more carefully, as if they can sense the tension between us.
I miss him. I miss him so much it aches.
At night, I lie in this big bed alone, reaching for the empty side where he used to pull me against his chest.
I miss his warmth, his low voice murmuring against my hair, the way he’d kiss my forehead before I fell asleep. I miss talking to him.
But I also need this space. I need time to think. I need to figure out if I can trust what I feel for him, or if I’m just terrified of going back to the life I knew before.
Terrified of ending up with someone like Gallo. Terrified of hoping for something real and getting my heart shattered.
During the day, I spend most of my time with Sienna. She’s still grieving Domenico. She’s trying so hard to be strong, but I see the emptiness in her eyes.
So I smile for her. I sit with her in the garden and talk about silly things, books, movies, anything that isn’t our father or the mess we’re in.
When she noticed I wasn’t wearing the engagement ring anymore, she asked about it. I simply told her I gave it back to Nico and that I didn’t want to talk about it. She’s already carrying enough pain. I won’t burden her with mine.
But the distance between Nico and me feels so wrong.
I was walking back from Sienna’s room this morning, when I saw him in the hallway. He looked exhausted, dark circles under his eyes, hair messy like he’d been running his hands through it for hours.
We both stopped at the same time, staring at each other in the dim light.
Neither of us moved. The air between us felt thick with everything we weren’t saying.
Finally, his voice came out low and rough. “Are you alright?”
The concern in his tone nearly broke me. I wanted to run into his arms. I wanted to tell him how much I missed him. Instead, I just nodded.
He lingered for another second, like he was fighting the urge to come closer, then stepped aside to let me pass. I walked by him, my heart screaming at me to stop, but I kept going.
Now it’s late again and sleep still won’t come.
I throw the covers off and slip out of bed. I pull on a robe and head downstairs, needing air.
The garden is quiet under the moonlight as I step outside, the cool night breeze brushing against my skin. I walk slowly along the path, arms wrapped around myself, trying to sort through the storm in my chest.
I pause when I hear footsteps behind me.
“Miss Eleonora?”
I turn to find Daniel standing a few feet away, half-hidden in the shadows.
Confusion hits me first. “Daniel? What are you doing here? I thought you no longer work at the house?”
That was what Nico told me after he introduced me to my new body guard. Even though he didn't tell me why. Another decision he made for me.
“I was reassigned to perimeter security,” he says quickly, stepping closer. He’s wearing a hoodie and combat pants, which isn’t the usual uniform for guards on duty.
“Oh okay. I was just taking a walk.”
There’s something about his presence that unsettles me. Perhaps I should just head back inside.
“I'm afraid you need to come with me,” he says, his voice filled with concern.
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s Sienna. She’s having a really bad breakdown tonight. The maids can’t calm her down. She keeps asking for you.”
My heart clenches. Without thinking, I nod. “Oh my God, I will go to her now.”
“Let's go.”
Daniel leads the way. I follow closely, too worried about my sister to notice at first that the path feels unfamiliar. We turn down a narrower trail, then another. The lanterns become fewer. The garden starts to feel wrong.
My steps slow.
“Daniel, this isn’t the way to the house—”
The estate alarms suddenly blare through the night.
At the same moment, Daniel’s hand clamps around my arm like steel. The concern on his face vanishes completely.
“That's because I'm not taking you to her,” he grits.
“What…”
I react instantly, twisting and slamming my elbow into his ribs. He grunts but doesn’t let go. I fight harder, kicking, clawing, trying to break free.
“Stop fighting,” he hisses, dragging me forward through the darkness, away from the house.
“What the hell are you doing?!” I shout, panic surging through me. “Where are you taking me?”
“Nico humiliated me,” Daniel growls, yanking me along. “Demoted me in front of everyone. Treated me like garbage. Gallo offered me real money, real power, and a place where I’m not some disposable dog. You do the math. All I have to do is help him get you back.”
The alarms scream louder. Lights flash across the grounds in the distance.
Terror floods my veins. I fight wildly, screaming Nico’s name even though I know he’s too far to hear. Daniel’s grip only tightens as he drags me deeper into the shadows.